On 15 June 1215, King John met the barons near Runnymeade on
the Thames, and granted them the charter which they laid before him.

This charter contains sixty-three articles, some of which were
merely temporary; the principles upon which the whole English
judicial system is based are these:

“No freeman shall be taken or imprisoned, or
disseised, or outlawed, or banished . . . unless by the lawful
judgment of his peers, or by the law of the land.”

“We will sell to no man, we will not deny to any man,
either justice or right.”

Among the most important articles were the two which limited
the power of the king in matters of taxation:

“No scutage or aid shall be imposed in our kingdom
unless by the general council of our kingdom;”

“For the holding of the general council of the
kingdom . . . we shall cause to be summoned the archbishops,
bishops, abbots, earls, and the greater barons of the realm,
singly, by our letters. And furthermore we shall cause to be
summoned generally by our sheriffs and bailiffs, all others who
hold of us in chief.”